Oh Where Oh Where Can My Wedding Be? | Type A Bride

How can you find your perfect wedding venue? Let’s sit & talk.

…with your fiancé.

…and paper and a pencil…or an iPhone.

Step 1
There are tons of venues out there. Needle in a haystack tons of venues. Maybe not what you want to hear. First, let's try to shrink that to just a handful of choices and save some time. Before you go looking, sit down and decide on the following:
• What would be your ideal wedding reception? How does it look (indoor/outdoor, natural, modern, edgy, etc.)? How do you want the guests to feel at that reception?
• What's your wedding theme and style?
• Where do you want to get married? Give yourself options but rank their priority.
• How many guests are you expecting? Most venues have a capacity minimum or maximum. Don’t squish your guests into something small and don’t have 20 people in a large ballroom, unless you’ve got the dramatic lighting that can pull that kind of thing off.
• List the venue must-haves: Examples can be easy wheelchair access, guidelines on the types of food or drinks they allow, etc.
• Estimated wedding date/time (they’ll ask you and it’ll determine your price)
• What's your budget?

Step 2
Decide traditional or offbeat.

If You Want Traditional:
These websites will have plenty of information on the traditional ones you'd like to see.
• The Knot
• Here Comes the Guide

If You Want Offbeat:
Personalize your wedding venue to your different kind of love story! You can also do this with a traditional venue as we'll talk about later but this can sometimes be the key to making a wedding really your style.
• What kind of venue would have personal and real meaning for you and your fiance?
• Where was the first place you met or dated?
• Do you have a favorite hobby together?
• What are your passions? Do you love amusement parks, movie theaters, horse racing, or museums?
• Where would your guests have fun and know that this place was totally meant for the two of you?

Potential Benefits of Offbeat Venues:
• Less competition for the wedding date
• Tendency for being open to negotiation
• Guests have never seen it before for a wedding (no comparisons)
• Express your real personality
• Flexible timing/dates
• Available resources right at the venue (for example, with our wedding at the Grove of Anaheim, we had the spotlights, crew, and audio/visual equipment that celebrities used)

Potential Problems with Offbeat Venues:
• The crew is less experienced in wedding planning/support
• May require you to bring everything from the outside in: catering, chairs, tables, sound, caterer, etc.
• Family resistance for those that prefer traditional - Be prepared.

Step 3
Brainstorm. See what you both love. Ask around. Drive around! That’s how we found our dream wedding venue:

Leave a comment and let us know what works/worked for you!

Effortlessly yours,
Drexelle
The Type A Bride